Native Son
by Wright, Richard
Richard Wright’s Native Son tells the story of 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, a black American youth living in utter poverty in Chicago's South Side during the 1930s. When Bigger unintentionally murders a white woman, he is put on trial and eventually convicted, and sentenced to the electric chair. Often recognized as a protest novel, Native Son stresses systemic racial issues, prompting the reader to feel both sympathy and empathy for Bigger. In this, the novel is one of the earliest successful attempts to explain the racial divide in America in terms of the conditions imposed on African-Americans by the dominant white society.
Soon after publication, Native Son was selected by the Book of the Month Club as its first book by an African-American author. Indeed, the novel was an immediate best seller, selling 250,000 hardcover copies within three weeks of its publication. As a result of the novel’s success, Wright became the first bestselling and the wealthiest black writer of his time, establishing him as a spokesperson for African-American issues and, to many, the “father of Black American literature.” In 1941, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People awarded Wright awarded the prestigious Spingarn Medal.
Unsurprisingly, Native Son was challenged in many public schools and libraries and is listed in the American Library Association's list of the “Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990–1999.” Yet most institutions in which the novel was challenged successfully fought to keep Wright's work accessible, particularly in the classroom, defending it as a guide into the reality of the complex adult and social world.
Native son is listed as 20th on the Modern Library’s list of the “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century. It is also included in TIME’s “100 Best Novels” (since 1923).
First Edition Identification and Notes
Harper & Brothers first published Native Son in 1940. With a dark blue cover stamped in red and white, first editions state “First Edition” on the copyright page with "A - P" below the statement. The dust jacket of the first edition is green and yellow and states the original price of $2.50.
Other Collectible or Notable Editions
In 1991, the Library of American published Native Son in its original entirety. This edition contains an introduction, a chronology, and notes by Arnold Rampersad, a well-regarded scholar of African-American literary works, as well as Wright's 1940 essay “How ‘Bigger’ Was Born.”
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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- 1st Edition
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$5,000.00
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Native Son (Novel & Play)
by Richard Wright
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- Lyons Fine Books
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- 1941
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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- First Edition
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Native Son [Stated 1st ed]
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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- 1st edition
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$2,750.00
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- Whitmore Rare Books
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son.
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son.
by WRIGHT, Richard.
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- 1940.
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, RICHARD
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1960
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NATIVE SON
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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- First Edition; First Printing
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$274.95
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1960
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$250.00
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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$250.00
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1940
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$225.00
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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- First Edition
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- Peyton Wilson
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- 1940
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NATIVE SON
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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Native Son (G K Hall Large Print Book Series)
by Richard Wright
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- Ergodebooks
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- 1993-09-01
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- Used:Good
- ISBN
- 9780816157877
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$188.50
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- J. Mercurio Books, Maps, & Prints
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- 1968
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$185.00
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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- 1st Edition
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$171.37
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Native Son (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) (Modern Classics (Pb))
by Richard Wright
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- 2005-06-01
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- New
- ISBN
- 9781417686087
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$158.41
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Native Son
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- 1940
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 1987-01-01
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- 9780808519805
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$131.58
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Native Son (Perennial Classics)
by Richard Wright
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- 2008-08-08
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- 9781435293403
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 1940
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- 1st Edition 1st Printing
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$128.80
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- Moe's Books
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- 1940
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- 1st Edition
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$125.00
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NATIVE SON
by Richard Wright
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- Rare Book Cellar
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- The First Edition Library - FEL; First Printing
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$125.00
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NATIVE SON
by Richard Wright
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- The First Edition Library - FEL; First Printing
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- Last Exit Books
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- 1940
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$124.95
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Native Son
by Wright, Richard
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- 2007-09-15
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- New
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- 9780099282938
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$123.05
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- Westsider Rare & Used Books Inc.
- Published
- 1940
- Condition
- Good++ faded spine, wear to extrems. Former owner's name on the FFEP. Stated first edition A-P. Top edged stained.
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- First Edition
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$120.00
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NATIVE SON
by Richard Wright
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- 1940
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- BOMC Book-Of-the-Month-Club
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$119.95
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- Atticism Gallery Sydney
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- 1940
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- 1st Edition
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Native Son
by Richard Wright
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- 2008-07-01
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- New
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- 9780061148507
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$114.22
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Native Son (Perennial Classics)
by Richard Wright
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- 2008-08-08
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- 9781435293403
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Native Son (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) (Modern Classics (Pb))
by Richard Wright
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- 2005-06-01
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- Good
- ISBN
- 9781417686087
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$110.57
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Native Son (G K Hall Large Print Book Series)
by Richard Wright
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- Books Express
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- 1993-09-01
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- 9780816157877
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Native Son (Perennial Classics)
by Richard Wright
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- Books Express
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- 2005-09-04
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- 9780060837563
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NATIVE SON
by WRIGHT, Richard
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- Second Life Books Inc
- Published
- 1940
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- First Edition
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$106.00